Today, Rep. Cindy Axne (IA-03) joined the five other members of the Iowa congressional delegation in a letter requesting additional staffing for the Iowa Taxpayer Advocate Service (TAS) office.
In a letter to the head of the National Taxpayer Advocate office, the members highlight concerns that the Iowa TAS office does not have enough staff to assist Iowans with questions and concerns regarding the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
“Due to the disruptions and complicated situations faced by Iowans during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, all of our offices are anticipating a significant increase in constituent requests for assistance with resolving tax issues,” the members wrote, “Our constituents are already dealing with new unfamiliar situations like unemployment and the Recovery Rebate Credit with reduced ability to get in person help… the ability of our offices to resolve these concerns quickly and effectively depends on an efficient Iowa TAS office, which is under-resourced at a critical time.”
Iowa’s only Local Taxpayer Advocate office, located in Des Moines, serves the entire state to resolve problems with the IRS, including lack of communication from the IRS or financial difficulties.
The members ask that additional staffing be expedited for the Des Moines TAS office, or that Iowans be allowed to work with available staff at other TAS offices to alleviate caseloads.
“We are asking for immediate proactive measures to be taken to mitigate the disruption in casework, such as the temporary transfer of experienced TAS caseworkers to the Des Moines office or the ability for Iowa Congressional offices or their constituents to work with other TAS offices,” the members wrote.
Each state has at least one Local Taxpayer Advocate who is independent of the local IRS office and reports directly to the National Taxpayer Advocate.
The National Taxpayer Advocate assists all types of taxpayers, including individuals, businesses, and tax-exempt entities, to resolve specific problems taxpayers are experiencing with the IRS. This office can help alleviate taxpayers’ problems and identify potential legislative changes to prevent these problems from occurring again.
The full text of the letter can be found below:
Ms. Collins,
With the 2020 tax filing season beginning, our offices are prepared to help our constituents with various questions and concerns they have with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Due to the disruptions and complicated situations faced by Iowans during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, all of our offices are anticipating a significant increase in constituent requests for assistance with resolving tax issues.
Our constituents are already dealing with new unfamiliar situations like unemployment and the Recovery Rebate Credit with reduced ability to get in person help, through programs like Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA). In addition, recent reporting from ProPublica has revealed backlogs at the IRS which are likely to lead to additional problems this tax season.
Congressional offices often help constituents resolve these concerns with assistance from local Taxpayer Advocate Service (TAS), alleviating the workload on the IRS and assisting our constituents more efficiently. However, the ability of our offices to resolve these concerns quickly and effectively depends on an efficient Iowa TAS office, which is under-resourced at a critical time.
Recent departures from the Iowa TAS office have left the office with one person dealing with intake and only one caseworker, with a caseload limited to thirty active cases at one time, to help resolve cases from Iowans. We are also not aware of any expedited efforts to hire additional staff before April 15, 2021.
We are concerned that without additional staff, our constituents will be unable to get help before the tax filing deadline. This is of added concern given the need for constituents who may have had issues with their Economic Impact Payments to be able to claim their Recovery Rebate Credit. The lack of experienced staff and institutional knowledge in the office not only reduces the TAS office’s capacity to help Iowans who reach out directly but also reduces the capacity of our offices to help resolve these matters for our constituents.
The increased likelihood of delayed service and issue resolution only worsens the stress, uncertainty, and financial burden that many Iowans have felt over the past year and will continue to feel in 2021. We are asking for immediate proactive measures to be taken to mitigate the disruption in casework, such as the temporary transfer of experienced TAS caseworkers to the Des Moines office or the ability for Iowa Congressional offices or their constituents to work with other TAS offices.
Sincerely,
Sen. Chuck Grassley
Sen. Joni Ernst
Rep. Cindy Axne
Rep. Randy Feenstra
Rep. Ashley Hinson
Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks
Original source can be found here.
